The newly-appointed Director of Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Padma Shri awardee Dr. Kameshwar Prasad is faced against a challenge of filling up nearly 100 vacancies of professors in State’s largest state-run medical college.
Prasad, who has been busy reviewing various departments of the medical college since taking charge as the director on Sunday, on Thursday said that his top priority was to fill the vacant posts of professors in the college and ensure that suitable candidates make it to RIMS.
Talking to The Pioneer, Prasad admitted that there was a vacancy of 72 assistant professors, nine additional professors and 10 professors at RIMS. “We will first try and fill the vacancies for assistant professors, and then proceed with the recruitment process for other positions,” said the renowned neurologist, who was associated with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi for several decades.
The newly-appointed RIMS director on Thursday said that he would review the condition of diagnostics equipment in the hospital soon and take necessary steps to ensure their smooth functioning in future. “Once we have sufficient manpower, we will also start using all the equipment,” he said.
Dr. Prasad said that he has asked doctors in clinical services to not get overburdened with administrative works and vice versa. However, in case of an emergency, the ones in administrative duty may have to take clinical responsibilities, he added.
“I am on administrative duty right now. But once this Covid situation ends, I will also take up clinical responsibilities in the hospital,” said Dr. Prasad.
Prasad has also decided to tighten the noose around doctors who indulge in private practice outside RIMS. However, he said that he did not believe in taking “coercive” steps in order to check private practice by doctors, and instead wanted the doctors to rely on their “conscience” to decide whether they wanted to dedicate their time and energy to RIMS or indulge in private practice.
“You cannot always deal with a situation with an iron fist. I am sure that the ones who are practicing in private will realise their mistake and stop repeating it on their own,” he said.
Former RIMS director, Dr. DK Singh had found himself in the crosshairs of doctors at RIMS for taking strict actions against doctors who practiced privately and deducting the salary of staff members who could not mark their attendance through a biometric system on time. A series of protests were held last year against the former director and his approach towards managing the staff at RIMS.